Virginia Tech Dendrology

prickly Florida blackberry Rosaceae Rubus argutus Link symbol: RUAR2
Leaf: Alternate, palmately compound, 3 to 5, but mostly 3 lanceolate to ellptical leaflets, serrated margins, prickles on petiole, shiny green above, paler below.
Flower: Showy white flowers (one inch across), appearing in a terminal cluster in late spring to early summer.
Fruit: Juicy, black multiple of drupes, 1/2 inch long; when picked, the fruit does not separate from its core, ripens in June and July.
Twig: Stout, strongly angled canes with large slightly hooked prickles, dull reddish brown, lacking glaucous bloom. Cane tips do not root.
Bark: Similar to twigs but darkens with age.
Form: Sprawling, arching canes form dense thickets often well over head high.
Looks like: Alleghany blackberry - dewberry - black raspberry - multiflora rose

Additional Range Information: Rubus argutus is native to North America. Range may be expanded by planting.
External Links: USDA Plants Database
All material © 2018 Virginia Tech Dept. of Forest Resources and Environmental Conservation; Photos and text by: John Seiler, Edward Jensen, Alex Niemiera, and John Peterson; Silvics reprinted from Ag Handbook 654; range map source information